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Aggies Take On Warriors Saturday
Oct. 27, 2008 LOGAN, Utah -
Complete Utah State Football Notes Vs. Hawai'i in PDF Format
HAWAI'I at UTAH STATE Saturday, Nov. 1, 1 p.m. (MT) Romney Stadium (25,513) - Logan, Utah National College Football Day / USU Military Appreciation Day QUICKLY -- Utah State (1-7, 1-3 WAC) will host defending Western Athletic Conference champion Hawai'i (4-4, 3-2 WAC) on Saturday, Nov. 1... Kickoff from USU's Romney Stadium (25,513) is at 1 p.m. (MT)... Saturday is National College Football Day, to honor the birth of college football on Nov. 6, 1869 - Rutgers vs. Princeton... Saturday's battle between the Aggies and the Warriors will be televised on ESPN-Regional and Altitude (Comcast Ch. 61 in Cache Valley). NATIONAL COLLEGE FOOTBALL DAY -- National College Football Day, observed on the first Saturday of November, was created by the AT&T Cotton Bowl five years ago as a way to pay tribute to a significant moment in our nation's history. On Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers defeated Princeton, 6-4. More importantly, those college athletes left a lasting legacy that would evolve into the great spectacle of football. Last year, the holiday took on added significance when the Classic teamed up with The V Foundation for Cancer Research. USU MILITARY APPRECIATION DAY -- Utah State will recognize "Military Appreciation Day" on Saturday, with all military personnel and the families will receive a 20 percent ticket discount with military ID... Halftime activities will include a presentation of the Meritorious Service Medal to former Army soldier and current USU senior offensive lineman Mike Green. ON TV -- Saturday's clash between the Warriors and the Aggies will be telecast on ESPN-Regional and Altitude (Comcast Ch. 61 in Cache Valley)... Trey Bender will be the play-by-play with analysis from Doug Chapman. ON THE AIR -- All Utah State football games are carried on KVNU 610 AM and KLZX 95.9 FM in Logan; 1230 AM in Salt Lake City; on KLZX 105.3 FM in Montpelier, Idaho, and on the Internet at www.UtahStateAggies.com by clicking on "Listen Live"... Al Lewis handles the play-by-play duties and Craig Hislop provides analysis. ON THE INTERNET -- USU home football are also streamed on the Internet through "Aggies All Access," by clicking on the "Live Aggies Video" link in the right hand column on the home page of www.UtahStateAggies.com. GAMETRACKER - Fans can follow all Aggie home games through the USU web site at www.UtahStateAggies.com via GameTracker, a free service, which updates play-by-play and statistics throughout the game. COACHES SHOW ON THE ROAD -- For the fourth-straight year the Brent Guy radio show will be held at different locations on campus on Thursday nights (6:05-6:45 p.m. on 610 AM KVNU). The show gives USU students an opportunity to ask questions and interact with Coach Guy and players. Food will be available at each show at a reduced rate from University Food Services. Upcoming Coaches Show Schedule: Oct. 30 (The HUB), Nov. 6 (Institute) UP NEXT -- USU travels to Boise, Idaho to take on Boise State, currently ranked No. 11, on Saturday, Nov. 8... Kickoff is scheduled for Noon (MT) at BSU's Bronco Stadium.
THREE OUT OF FOUR VS. RANKED OPPONENTS -- USU's game on Oct. 3 vs. No. 8 BYU was Utah State's third ranked opponent in four games after playing 18th-ranked Oregon (L, 24-66) on Sept. 6, then 22nd-ranked Utah on Sept. 13 (L, 10-58) and then unranked Idaho on Sept. 20 (W, 42-17)... This season is the first time since 2001 that USU faced three ranked opponents in a span of four games, playing at No. 13 LSU (L, 14-31), then playing unranked Wyoming on Sept. 22 (L, 42-43) before taking on 6th-ranked Oregon on Sept. 29 (L 21-38) and at No. 18 BYU on Oct. 5 (L, 34-54)... USU played three ranked opponent this season for the second year in a row, after not playing three in one season since 2001. USU IN THE 11th MONTH / ON NOV. 1 -- Utah State has won its last two games in November but have lost 12 of its last 19 games in the American Thanksgiving month... Saturday is the Aggies' first game on Nov. 1 since 2003 when USU beat Middle Tennessee State, 41-20... Overall, USU is 5-6-1 on Nov. 1 since 1914, having won two in a row and four of its last five on the date, all at home as part of the Aggies' 4-3 home record on Nov. 1... Here's a look at how USU has fared on Nov. 1: 1924 - L, 13-17 at Colorado State 1930 - L, 14-39 at BYU 1941 - L, 0-28 vs. BYU 1947 - W, 28-13 at Montana State 1952 - T, 20-20 at Wichita State 1958 - L, 6-13 vs. BYU 1969 - L, 7-27 at Utah 1975 - W, 27-21 vs. Wyoming 1980 - W, 21-7 vs. Pacific 1986 - L, 3-14 vs. Long Beach State 1997 - W, 24-20 vs. Boise State 2003 - W, 41-20 vs. Middle Tennessee State
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN -- Each week Utah State will select game captains. Those selected for the Hawai'i game will be announced later in the week. ROAD WOE-IORS -- Life on the road has been tough for the Aggies, who have lost their last four road games and are 3-22 under head coach Brent Guy... The win at New Mexico State on Nov. 17, 2007 snapped a 13-game road losing skid, as two of USU's three road wins are at NMSU, with the 35-17 victory last year plus winning on the road in the 2005 season finale at New Mexico State, 24-21, along with the 24-19 win at Idaho on Nov. 24 of last year. SWEET HOME? -- Utah State has just two home wins in its last 16 home games, as the win over Idaho on Sept. 20 snapped a seven-game home losing skein, after USU had last won on its home turf on Oct. 7, 2006 with a 13-12 win over Fresno State... The Aggies are 4-15 at home under head coach Brent Guy. ABOUT UTAH STATE -- USU has lost four in a row since its lone win of the season with a 42-17 triumph over Idaho on Sept. 20... The Aggies are 1-7 overall and 1-3 in WAC play after suffering a heartbreaking Homecoming loss to Fresno State, as the Bulldogs' Kevin Goessling booted a 58-yard field goal as time expired to lift Fresno State to a 30-28 win... Offensively, USU ranks sixth in the WAC and 72nd in the NCAA in rushing offense (132.4 ypg) and seventh in the conference and 89th in the conference in passing offense (187.7 ypg) to rank eighth in the league and 94th in the nation in total offense (320.0 ypg)... Defensively, the Aggies are sixth in the conference and 100th in the country in rushing offense (187.5 ypg) as well as sixth in the league and 102nd in the nation in passing defense (251.8 ypg) to rank eighth in the WAC and 106th in the WAC in total defense (439.3 ypg)... Averaging 19.9 ppg, USU is eighth in the league and 94th in the nation in scoring offense while ranking eighth in the conference and 114th in the country in scoring defense, yielding 38.3 ppg... Individually, sophomore QB Diondre Borel is sixth in the WAC and 72nd in the NCAA in passing efficiency (118.6), as well as fifth in the conference and 69th in the country in total offense (193.6 ypg)... Defensively, senior LB Jake Hutton ranks fourth in the league and tied for 39th in the nation in tackles with 8.8 pg... Sophomore P/PK Peter Caldwell is fourth in the conference and 38th in the country in punting (41.5 ypp) as well as seventh in the league and tied for 92nd in the nation in field goals with 0.6 pg... Junior K Chris Ulinski has boomed nine touchbacks on the season and his kickoffs have kept opponents inside the 25 a total of 17 times. HOT BOREL -- Sophomore QB Diondre Borel has started the last five games for the Aggies - in those five games, he has 1,126 yards of total offense for an average of 225.2 ypg, which ... After playing a majoring of the previous three starts, Borel has been the signal-caller for all of the last two games, in which he has 579 yards of total offense, a 289.5 ypg average. PERFECT PETE -- Sophomore PK/P Peter Caldwell now has 44 career PAT's, (44-of-44), remaining in a tie for first with Willie Beecher (64-of-64, 1981-84) and Russ Moody (44-of-44, 1988-89) as the only three USU kickers with a perfect career PAT percentage (1.000). AGGIE TIDBITS -- The USU defense's streak of at least one interception in a game came to an end at six, but they have a pick off in 14 of the last 19 games dating back to last season... The Nevada game was the USU defense's fourth multi-turnover game this season and seventh in the nine games and 13th time in the last 18 games dating back to last season... Also from the Nevada game, the Aggie defense had four turnovers in a game for the first time since last year's season-finale at Idaho when USU had three INT's and one fumble recovery... Six different USU defenders have an INT, compared to nine total last season... Redshirt freshman RB Robert Turbin's 40-yard rush in the BYU game was USU's fourth rushing TD of over 20 yards after having no rushing TD's of over 20 yards last season... Overall, the Aggies have seven offensive TD of 20 yards or more this season compared to six all of last year... Turbin now leads USU with three rushing TD's this season, matching last season's for most by a running back (Derrvin Speight)... The 52-yard TD pass from sophomore QB Diondre Borel to senior WR Otis Nelson in the Nevada game was USU's longest offensive TD this season and was the second TD reception over 20 yards... The Aggies now have 11 TD receptions this season, compared to 11 for all of last year... USU now has eight different receivers with TD catches, compared to only five different receivers with scoring catches last year... Junior TE Zac Zimmerman caught his first career reception in the SJSU game... The Aggies have scored 159 points this season through eight games, compared to 161 points at this point last season... In the SJSU game, USU's defense held an opponent scoreless in the opening quarter for the first time since the last time the Aggies played at San Jose State, on Oct. 14, 2006, a span of 23 games... Sophomore P Peter Caldwell punted five times in the first quarter of the SJSU game, matching his combined punts from the previous two games (four vs. BYU, one vs. Idaho)... The Aggies' 10 punts in the SJSU game were the most since 11 at Clemson on Oct. 16, 2004. STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE -- According to the NCAA, Utah State has the toughest schedule in the WAC for both games against Football Bowl Subdivision teams (ranked 41st overall) and for all games including games against FBS and Football Championship Series teams (tied for No. 36 overall)... Hawai'i is third in the WAC in both categories: FBS Only: WAC NCAA Rank Rank Team Cumulative Opposition Record Win Pct. 1 41 Utah State 41-35 / .539 3 83 Hawai'i 34-41 / .453ABOUT HAWAI'I -- The Warriors are 4-4 overall and 3-2 in WAC play after edging Nevada, 38-31 on Saturday at Honolulu... Hawai'i is eighth in the WAC and 105th in the NCAA in rushing offense (103.5 ypg) but third in the league and 52nd in the nation in passing offense (222.5 ypg) to rank seventh in the conference and 90th in the country in total offense (326.0 ypg)... Defensively, UH is fifth in the league and 98th in the nation in rushing defense (183.1 ypg) and fourth in the conference and 53rd in the country in passing defense (200.5 ypg) to rank fifth in the WAC and 85th in the NCAA in total defense (383.6 ypg)... Hawai'i is fifth in the league and 85th in the nation in scoring offense (21.4 ppg) as well as fifth in the conference and 92nd in the country in scoring defense (29.9 ppg)... Individually, junior QB Inoke Funaki is 88th in the NCAA in both passing efficiency (111.4) and total offense (158.0 ypg), ranking ninth and eighth in the WAC, respectively... Defensively, senior LB Solomon Elimimian is seventh in the league in tackles with 7.5 pg, while senior S Keao Monteilh is tied for fourth in the conference and tied for 39th in the country in interceptions with three picks (0.4 pg)... Senior P Tim Grasso (a Kaysville, Utah native) is sixth in the league and 58th in the nation in punting (40.1 ypp) while senior PK Dan Kelly is tied for fourth in the WAC and tied for 100th in the NCAA in field goals (1.0 pg). WATCH OUT FOR THE WATCH LISTERS -- Saturday's game features two of the WAC's Rimington Trophy Watch List players, honoring college football best centers, in Utah State's senior Ryan Tonnemacher and Hawai'i junior John Estes... Additionally, three of the WAC's four Butkus Award Watch List players, honoring the best linebacker in college football, will be on display in the Aggie duo of senior Jake Hutton and junior Paul Igboeli as well as Hawai'i senior Adam Leonard. USU-UH SERIES -- The Utah State-Hawai'i series is tied at 4-4, but the Warriors have won the last three meetings... USU leads 2-1 in games played at Logan, with Hawai'i winning the last match-up, 63-10, in 2006... The Warriors have outscored the Aggies, 165-70 in their three-game win streak, an average of 55-23... The teams met in 1927, 1957, 59, 65, 66, 2005 and '06... USU lost its first visit to the islands in 1927 (21-20) before winning in its 1959 (48-6) and 1966 (48-0) visits there... After meeting in 1966, the teams didn't meet each other until 2005's match-up at Hawai'i, with the Warriors winning 50-23. USU vs. Hawai'i Overall: 4-4-0 Home: 2-1-0 Away: 2-3-0 12-17-27 L 20-21 A 9-14-57 W 26-12 H 12-11-59 W 48-6 A 9-11-65 W 31-12 H 11-26-66 W 48-0 A 11-12-05 L 23-50 A 11-4-06 L 10-63 H 10-6-07 L 37-52 AUTAH STATE-HAWAI'I LAST TIME - Oct. 6, 2007 - HONOLULU -- Despite a season-high points and total yards of offense, Utah State was on the short end of a 52-37 loss at 16th-ranked Hawai'i on Oct. 6 at Aloha Stadium. USU scored the most points since 41 in a 41-20 win against Middle Tennessee on Nov. 1, 2003 and compiled 370 yards of total offense, which is the most since 373 at Louisiana Tech on Oct. 21, 2006. Senior WR/KR Kevin Robinson had a 100-yard kick return for a TD and a 77-yard reception for a TD from fellow senior, QB/P Leon Jackson III, in the third quarter. The 77-yard pass play from Jackson to Robinson was USU's longest play from scrimmage at the time last season and the longest since a 79-yard pass play from Travis Cox to Barry Tolli against New Mexico on Oct. 4, 2003. However, the Aggies also gave up 465 yards of passing by Hawai'i, the most yielded by the USU defense this season. Robinson's 100-yard kick return was the third longest in school history and the longest in the modern era since the NCAA statistics counted all returns in the end zone as 100-yard returns. The school record is 105 by Altie Taylor vs West Texas State (now West Texas A&M) in 1967 and No. 2 is Tom Larsheid's 102-yard return vs. BYU in 1960. Robinson also broke the school record for career kick returns with his third career kick return (second in three games - vs. San Jose State on Sept. 22). He also moved into No. 2 on USU's career all-purpose yards, passing Kendal Smith's 5,266 all-purpose yards (1985-88). The No. 1 spot is held by Emmett White (1998-2001) with 5,872 yards. Robinson's two TD's were his first multi-TD game since at Louisiana Tech last year as well and give him 25 for his career, as he is No. 7 on USU's career TD list. Jackson moved to No. 8 on USU's career total offense list, as his 216 yards gave him 4,027 for his career, passing Abu Wilson (1992, 94-96) with 3,933 yards. The Aggies fell to 0-6 overall and 0-2 in Western Athletic Conference play, as USU suffered its 12th-straight loss overall and 17th in the last 18 games. Hawai'i improved to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in WAC action. AGGIES-WARRIORS LAST TIME AT LOGAN - Nov. 4, 2006 -- Utah State produced 362 yards, but just 10 points in suffering its worst loss since 1989 as the Aggies dropped a game to Hawai'i 63-10 on Nov. 4 of last season. The 53-point scoring margin was the worst for USU since it lost to Southern California by 56 points (66-10) in 1989. After Hawai'i scored a touchdown on its opening drive, Utah State responded with a scoring drive on its own, kicking a 46-yard field goal for its first made field goal of the season. The Aggies had been the only team in the nation without a three-pointer that season. However, Hawai'i scored the next three touchdowns of the half to take a 28-3 lead into the break. USU opened the third quarter with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that was capped with an Antraun McDaniel 1-yard touchdown run to make the score Hawai'i 28-10. The visiting Warriors then added five more touchdowns the rest of the game as they compiled 572 yards, including 486 passing. USU's Kevin Robinson pulled in five balls for 84 yards to lead the Aggie offense, while quarterback Riley Nelson hit 17-of-29 passes for 225 yards and rushed for 65 yards on 15 carries. However, the freshman also threw one interception and fumbled twice in the contest. Defensively, Terrance Washington recorded the eighth interception of his career, while De'von Hall and Paul Igboeli each had a team-best five tackles. USU-UH NOTE-ABLE -- USU does not have any players on its active roster from the state of Hawai'i... The Warriors have one player from the state of Utah, senior P Tim Grasso, who is from Kaysville, Utah, the same hometown at USU sophomore P/PK Peter Caldwell and both went to Davis HS... Grasso attended Dixie State in St. George, Utah his freshman year before transferring to Saddleback CC as a sophomore and then on to Hawai'i prior to the 2007 season... USU senior DB's Caleb and Joshua Taylor were high school teammates with Hawai'i senior OL Lafu Tuioti-Mariner at Corona High School in Corona, Calif... Travis LaBoy, who redshirted the 1999 season at Utah State, transferred to Hawai'i where he earned WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2003. CURRENT AGGIE HIGHLIGHTS VS. THE WARRIORS -- Here is a look at how some current Aggies have fared against Hawai'i in their careers: DB Joshua Taylor had six tackles while LB Jake Hutton had five stops in 2005... LB/S De'von Hall and LB Paul Igboeli had five tackles each in 2006... Igboeli added a team-leading nine tackles last season while S James Brindley tallied seven stops... S Caleb Taylor had an interception last year with a 20-yard return... TE Doug Barbour had four catches for 36 yards last year while WR Xavier Bowman had two receptions for 24 yards, including a 14-yard TD catch. USU BESTS VS. HAWAI'I -- Here is a look at some of the top USU statistical individual performances against the Warriors over the years: MacArthur Lane had an 84-yard rush against Hawai'i in 1966, the seventh-longest rush in school history... Merrill Johnson and Tom Larscheid connected for a 76-yard pass play against the Warriors in 1959 for what was then the second-longest pass play in USU history (now tied for 22nd)... Jim Swindle had a 90-yard interception return in 1959, USU's fourth-longest INT return... Altie Taylor had what was then the third-longest (now tied for sixth) punt return in 1966 with an 82-yarder... In 2005 against Hawai'i, Justin Hamblin kicked a 50-yard field goal, the last time an Aggie kicked a 50-yarder...USU piled up 428 rushing yards on Hawai'i in 1966, the sixth-most in USU history... In 1965, the Aggie defense yielded only 115 yards of total offense to Hawai'i, the 13th-lowest total... The next season, the USU defense limited UH to 20 rushing yards, which was the fourth-lowest rushing total (currently 18th)... The 48-0 win in 1966 is the 19th largest winning margin, while last season's 63-10 loss is the 12th-largest losing margin... Last season's 100-yard kickoff return by Kevin Robinson was the third longest in school history and the longest in the modern era since the NCAA statistics counted all returns in the end zone as 100-yard returns. 2008 RANKED OPPONENTS -- There are currently four USU opponents in the Top 25: 10. Utah (L 10-58 - Sept. 13)
If any upcoming opponent is ranked when USU faces them, it will mark the first time since 2001 that the Aggies will face four ranked opponents in the same season and if both are still ranked, it will mark the first time ever that USU has taken on five ranked opponents.
HEAD COACH Brent Guy -- Brent Guy (Oklahoma State, 1983) is in his fourth year as head coach after coming to Utah State from Arizona State where he was the defensive coordinator for four years. Guy was an assistant coach (linebackers) at Utah State from 1992-94 under then head coach Charlie Weatherbie. During that time, USU posted its only bowl victory in school history, claiming the 1993 Las Vegas Bowl. Guy was involved in eight bowl games in 19 years as a collegiate assistant coach. Previous stops include Oklahoma State (1986-91 - graduate assistant 1986-87, recruiting coordinator 1988, linebackers 1989-91), Utah State (1992-94 - linebackers), Oklahoma State (1995-97 - linebackers), Boise State (1998-2000 - defensive coordinator) and Arizona State (2001-04 - defensive coordinator) before being named the Aggies' 25th head coach in December of 2004. In his first year at USU, the Aggies were 3-8 overall and 2-6 in the Western Athletic Conference. Utah State Head Coach All WAC 2005 3-8 2-6 2006 1-11 1-7 2007 2-10 2-6 2008 1-7 1-3 Total 7-36 6-22GUY VS. UH -- USU head coach Brent Guy is 1-4 all-time vs. Hawai'i, currently 0-3 as head coach, 0-1 as an assistant at Boise State and 1-0 as an assistant at Oklahoma State. 1995 (Oklahoma State Assistant) - W 24-20 at Honolulu 1999 (Boise State Assistant) - L, 19-34 at Honolulu 2005 (Utah State Head Coach) - L, 23-50 at Honolulu 2006 (Utah State Head Coach) - L, 10-63 at Logan 2007 (Utah State Head Coach) - L, 37-52 at HonoluluDID YOU KNOW? -- Utah State offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey did not face Hawai'i while he was head coach at North Texas. AGGIE ASSISTANT COACHES -- Utah State had one change on its coaching staff from last year, as Thomas Dunson joined the staff.
DID YOU KNOW? -- USU head coach Brent Guy and offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey played against each other when Guy was a linebacker at Oklahoma State and Dickey was a quarterback at Kansas State... Oklahoma State won all four meetings during Guy and Dickey's tenures, winning 42-15 in 1979, 10-0 in 1980, 31-10 in '81 and 24-16 in '82... Oct. 20 marked the 25th anniversary of Guy and Dickey's last meeting of 1982 when Oklahoma State hosts Kansas State... In the 1982 Cowboy-Wildcat clash, Guy had 18 tackles, including one TFL and two pass break-ups while Dickey was 17-of-35 passing for 185 yards with two TD's and one INT. USU NOTE-ABLE -- OFFENSIVE NOTES -- The Aggie offense did not have a turnover in the Oregon game, marking the first time since Oct. 7, 2006 vs. Fresno State that USU did not have a turnover... The USU offense has had nine different players rush the ball (five different ball-carriers at UNLV, six at Oregon, five vs. Utah, eight vs. Idaho, six vs. BYU, six at SJSU, five at Nevada and six vs. Fresno St.), as well as 15 different players with a reception (seven at UNLV, 10 at Oregon, seven vs. Utah, including OL Tariq Polley making the rare offensive lineman reception on a deflected pass, eight vs. Idaho, seven vs. BYU, eight at SJSU, seven at Nevada and seven vs. Frenso St.)... The Aggies had a season-high 580 yards of total offense against Idaho, including season-bests 356 rushing yards and 224 passing yards... Individually, USU had four of its top five rushing outputs up to that point in the Idaho game at the time, led by redshirt-freshman RB Robert Turbin's 123 yards to became USU's first 100-yard rusher since Marcus Cross had 127 at BYU on Sept. 23, 2006... USU's 580 yards of total offense was the most since 684 vs. Weber State on Nov. 17, 2001... It was the most against a Division I team since 595 at Boise State, Nov. 11, 2000... The 356 rushing yards was USU's first 300-yard rushing game since 322 vs. New Mexico State on Nov. 4, 2000... The 356 rushing yards were the most since 388 at Nevada on Nov. 20, 1999... Turbin now has two of the top three rushing outings after 74 vs. BYU... Senior WR Otis Nelson has a team-leading four TD passes on the season and six for his career after two TD catches at Nevada... Nelson has now caught a pass in 26 consecutive games, the third-longest active streak in the WAC... In the Nevada game, Nelson also surpassed his previous career high for receptions yards with 86, passing the previous mark of 72, which he had done twice this season and three times previous in his career... The 52-yard pass from sophomore QB Diondre Borel to junior WR Nnamdi Gwacham in the fourth quarter of the Fresno State game was Gwacham's career-long reception while it tied Borel's career long from last game at Nevada... Borel now has nine TD passes on the season, and USU now has 11 TD passes this year matching last season's total... Borel's two-point conversion was USU's first successful two-point conversion of the season and the first since RB Derrvin Speight's two-point rush last season at Utah, a span of 15 games... The TD on USU's opening drive of the Fresno State game was its first score on its opening drive this season and the first since a field goal on the initial drive of the Hawai'i game last year on Oct. 6, a span of 14 games... USU's first down on its opening drive vs. Fresno State was just the second time this season that the Aggie offense did not go three-and-out in its initial offensive drive... The Aggies' seven first-quarter points in the Fresno State game matches their opening stanza scoring on the season, last scoring in the first frame in the Utah game on Sept. 13, and USU has now been out-scored in the first quarter, 82-14. DEFENSIVE NOTES -- After forcing three turnovers in the Utah game, two against Idaho, two against BYU and four against Nevada, the Aggie defense has caused at least two turnovers seven times in last nine games and 13th time in the last 18 games dating back to last season... The USU defense had its interception streak in consecutive games snapped in the Fresno State game, but the Aggies have at least one interception in 14 of the last 19 games dating back to last season... Junior LB Paul Igboeli snared his first career INT in the Utah game... USU's two interceptions in the Nevada game marked the third time in the last four games with multiple interceptions and fifth time in last nine games going back to last season... Six different players have one interception each, compared to a total of nine players all of last season... A total of 39 different players have recorded a tackle, including 22 with double-digit stops... The Aggie defense limited Idaho to 271 yards of total offense, the lowest total since 234, which was also vs. Idaho on Sept. 11, 2004... USU's two interceptions in the BYU game was the second game in a row with multiple interceptions and fourth time in last seven games dating back to last season... USU's defense held an opponent scoreless in the opening quarter for the first time since the last time the Aggies played at San Jose State, on Oct. 14, 2006, a span of 23 games... Senior LB Jake Hutton has at least eight tackles in five of the eight games this season and double-digit tackle outputs in five games, including 13 stops in the Fresno State game, which is a USU high this season... Hutton now has 11 double-figure tackle games for his career. SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES -- Utah State's game at Oregon marked the first time since Nov. 11, 2006 at Nevada that USU did not have a kickoff return of at least 20 yards... The Aggies remain perfect on the season in both PAT's (12-of-12))... The Utah game was the first time that USU did not have a punt return since at Idaho last season (Nov. 24, 2007)... In the Idaho game, USU only punted once, marking the first time since 2002 that the Aggies only had to punt once... USU fumbled a kickoff for the second time in three games after fumbling in the Utah and BYU games... The blocked field goal in the BYU game was the first time since Oct. 7, 2005 vs. San Jose State that the Aggies had blocked a field goal... Sophomore P Peter Caldwell punted five times in the first quarter of the SJSU game, matching his combined punts from the previous two games (four vs. BYU, one vs. Idaho)... The Aggies' 10 punts at SJSU were the most since 11 at Clemson on Oct. 16, 2004... The 57-yard kickoff return by Murphy in the Nevada game was a career-long and USU's longest kickoff return this season... Murphy also had a 15-yard punt return in the Nevada game, which also is USU's longest punt return this year... Junior K Chris Ulinski's 42-yard field goal in the Nevada game was the first of his USU career and also ties Caldwell for USU's longest FG of the season... Caldwell's two field goals in the Fresno State game was the first time since at Fresno State last season that he had a multi-FG outing after four last season as he now has five for his career. TONNEMACHER ON RIMINGTON TROPHY WATCH LIST -- For the second year in a row, offensive center Ryan Tonnemacher has been named to the Rimington Trophy Watch List, given annually to the nation's most outstanding center in college football. Tonnemacher (pronounced Tawn-uh-mawker), a 6-3, 292-pound senior from Chandler, Ariz. (Hamilton HS), is one of 43 players named to the Watch List. Tonnemacher is one of four centers from the WAC to be recognized, as he's joined by John Estes from Hawai'i, Adam Korby of Idaho and Nevada's Dominic Green. Tonnemacher is the only center from the state of Utah on this season's list. As a junior last season, Tonnemacher started all 12 games at center, one of eight Aggies to start every contest. His 759 offensive plays tied him with offensive guard Shawn Murphy and offensive tackle Derek Hoke for most on the offense and were the fourth-most on the team. Tonnemacher entered his senior season with a team-leading 24 consecutive starts after starting all 12 games in both 2006 and 2007. He is a three-year letterwinner after starting three games as a freshman in 2005. A total of 17 centers were repeat selections from last year's preseason Watch List, including Tonnemacher, Korby and Green, as well as last year's winner, Jonathan Luigs from Arkansas. The Rimington Trophy has not had a repeat winner in its history. HUTTON AND IGBOELI ON BUTKUS TROPHY WATCH LIST -- Utah State linebackers Jake Hutton and Paul Igboeli were both named to the 2008 Butkus Award watch list, given annually to the top linebacker in college football, announced by the Butkus Foundation. Hutton, a senior, and Igboeli, a junior, were one of 10 sets of teammates on the 66 player list. The Aggie duo were two of four Western Athletic Conference players on the watch list, joining Adam Leonard of Hawai'i and Josh Mauga of Nevada. Hutton and Igboeli are also two of the three players from Utah schools, joining Utah's Stevenson Sylvester. Hutton, a native of Pocatello, Idaho (Highland HS), earned second-team all-WAC honors last year after he led USU and ranked eighth in the WAC as well as tied for 71st in the NCAA with 102 tackles, including 58 solo stops. The 58 solo tackles ranked tied for fifth in the league. His 58 solo tackles were also the most for an Aggie since Jesse Busta had 64 in 2002. Hutton registered a USU single-game season-best 16 stops at New Mexico State. Igboeli (pronounced Ig-bo-lee), a Grand Prairie, Texas (South Grand Prairie HS) native was second on the team and 13th in the WAC with 95 tackles, including 51 solo stops, which ranked among the top 15 in league. He was tied for second on the team with eight tackles for loss and also tallied three pass break-ups and one fumble recovery. Igboeli posted two of USU's top five tackle outings on the year with 15 at New Mexico State and 12 at Fresno State. In 2006, Igboeli was the WAC Freshman of the Year. USU TIDBITS -- TACKLE CHART -- Senior LB Jake Hutton entered his final season in Aggie blue and white with 218 career tackles, in need of 95 more to reach USU's top 10 list, as Blake Eagal currently holds the No. 10 spot with 313 career stops from 1997-2000... After 13 tackles in the Fresno State game, Hutton currently has 288 career tackles, leaving him 25 shy of cracking the top 10. OSKIE RETURNS -- Junior S James Brindley tied for the team lead with three interceptions last season but led the Aggies with 96 return yards, a mark that ranked fourth in the WAC and was good for ninth on USU's single-season list... Brindley's 32-yard interception return in the Idaho game gives him 130 interception return yards for his career, moving him to No. 8 on USU's career INT return yardage list... He needs five more to reach No. 7, currently held by Grant Matrinsen (1964-66), while Chuck Detwiler is No. 6 with 140 yards from 1966-68. JUST KICKIN' IT -- Sophomore P/K Peter Caldwell is 44-of-44 (1.000) on PAT's, one of three Aggie kickers with a perfect career PAT percentage... Caldwell is now 18-of-28 (.643) on field goals for his career, needing one more make and attempt to reach USU's career top 10 field goals list. A CHANGE IN ALTITUDE -- There are nine Division I schools that are located in cities with an elevation of at least 4,000 feet about sea level... Utah State's home of Logan ranks seventh on the list with an elevation of 4,534 feet... This season the Aggies will play at only one of those other locations giving USU seven games this season at 4,000 feet above sea level after playing eight in 2006 and seven last year. USU will play at Reno, Nev. (#8 at 4,505 feet) against Nevada on Oct. 18... The Aggies will face two of the other teams on the list in #6 BYU (Oct. 3) and #9 Utah (Sept. 13). School City, State Elevation 1. Wyoming Laramie, Wyo. 7,220 2. Air Force Colorado Springs, Colo. 6,010 3. Colorado Boulder, Colo. 5,328 4. Colorado State Fort Collins, Colo. 5,003 5. New Mexico Albuquerque, N.M. 4,957 6. Brigham Young Provo, Utah 4,550 7. UTAH STATE LOGAN, UTAH 4,534 8. Nevada Reno, Nev. 4,505 9. Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 4,262OH BROTHER WHERE ART THOUGH -- Utah State's senior twin brother tandem of cornerback Joshua (#23) and safety Caleb Taylor (#39) are a brotherly duo that are one of just eight pairs brother teammates in Division I. The Taylors are one of three tandems who are twins... Below is the most recent listing of current brothers starting for the same college team, including San Jose State's brother tandem of Carl and Duke Ihenacho... Last Saturday's Utah State-San Jose State match-up is this season's only such regular-season occasion involving two teams from this list: School Brothers (Positions) California Eddie (Jr., LB) and Sean Young (Sr., WR) Ole Miss John (Jr., OL) and Peria Jerry (Sr., DT) Rutgers Twin brothers Devin (Jr., CB) and Jason McCourty (Sr., CB)* San Jose St. Carl (Jr., DE) and Duke Ihenacho (So., LB) Temple Twin brothers Elijah (So., OLB) and Elisha Joseph (So., DT) UTAH STATE Twin brothers Caleb (Sr., FS) and Joshua Taylor (Sr., CB) Virginia Tech Cam (Jr., OLB) and Orion Martin (Sr., DE) Wyoming Marcell (So., CB) and Tashaun Gipson (Fr., CB)*Devin McCourty redshirted his freshman season at Rutgers while his twin brother Jason did not redshirt, thus their different years in school. TALL HOKE -- Senior offensive tackle Derek Hoke is the tallest player on USU's roster at 6'9" - Hoke is one of seven players on the Aggie roster listed at 6'5" or taller... He is also unofficially, the second-tallest player in NCAA Division I this season, behind 6'10" Alejandro Villanueva of Army. BIG BOOKENDS -- Utah State's bookends at offensive tackle, senior Derek Hoke on the left and sophomore Spencer Johnson on the right, are two of the combined tallest tackles in the country, with Hoke towering at 6'9" and Johnson at 6'5"... The Aggie duo's combined height of 13'2" unofficially trails the 13'5" Colorado tandem of Nate Solder (6'8") and Ryan Miller (6'7") and the 13'3" Wisconsin duo of Gabe Carimi (6'8") and Eric Vanden Heuv. NUMBER CHANGES -- Utah State had several jersey number changes prior to this season and/or from the media guide: Doug Barbour from 80 to 87 Brian Mason from 91 to 49 James Brindley from 26 to 3 Kejon Murphy from 9 to 1 Marquis Butler from 19 to 13 Emmanual Ojeriakhi from 88 to 19 Peter Caldwell from 38 to 8 Jake Poulson from 20 to 30 Marquise Charles from 3 to 26 Chris Randle from 24 to 7 Greg Clark from 93 to 91 Robert Turbin from 30 to 6 Levi Koskan from 91 to 93 Chris Williams from 10 to 9 Junior Keiaho from 92 to 59 Zac Zimmerman from 70 to 48VETERAN EXPERIENCE -- USU has 17 seniors on its roster which matches last season as the biggest senior class in head coach Brent Guy's three seasons at USU and the largest Aggie senior class since 1999's 21 seniors. THREE "A" AGGIES -- Out of the 17 seniors on the roster, 12 of them are three-year letterwinners. TIME TRAVELERS -- Utah State will play in three different time zones this season: Central (at Louisiana Tech on Nov. 15), Mountain (all home games, at Boise State on Nov. 8) and Pacific (at UNLV on Aug. 30, at Oregon on Sept. 6, at San Jose State on Oct. 11 and at Nevada on Oct. 18). While Utah State only plays in three different time zones this season, the Aggies have at least one player from five different time zones, Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific and Hawaiian-Aleutian. BEEHIVE BUNCH -- Utah State has 23 players from the state of Utah on its roster. BIRTHDAY BOYS -- In all 20 Aggie players have birthdays from the time camp opened on Aug. 1 to the end of the season... Two Aggies have a birthday on a football game day: senior RB Chris Forbes (Sept. 13 vs Utah) and senior DE Gregg Clark (Oct. 11 at San Jose State). SEVEN 2008 OPPONENTS WENT BOWLING -- USU will face seven teams that went to a bowl game last year, including a stretch a four weeks in a row. Oregon (Sept. 6) - Sun Bowl vs. South Florida - W, 56-21
USU is one of four WAC teams to play three non-conference games against a team that was in bowl game last year, joining Boise State, Fresno State and Hawai'i. 2008 OPPONENTS IN THE POLLS -- Utah State will face three teams ranked in the top 25, though the four different polls have different teams, with the two constants in all four major polls, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, ESPN and AP, with BYU and Oregon the constants, while Fresno State is ranked in both the USA Today and ESPN polls but not by Sports Illustrated and is among others receiving votes in the AP poll, while Hawai'i is only in the Sports Illustrated poll and is also among others receiving votes in the AP poll... Other USU opponents in the others receiving votes list include Utah and Boise State. Utah State and Nevada are the only two WAC teams to play more than one preseason Top 25 team in the AP poll, the "official" poll of college football... The Aggies tangle with No. 16 BYU (Oct. 3) and 21st-ranked Oregon (Sept. 6), while the Wolf Pack of Nevada plays sixth-ranked Missouri and No. 12 Texas Tech... Four other conference teams play one AP Top 25 team: Boise State (No. 21 Oregon), Fresno State (No. 13 Wisconsin), Hawai'i (No. 5 Florida) and Louisiana Tech (No. 14 Kansas).
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